Written question asked by Mark Pritchard (Conservative) on Thursday, 16 November 2006, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 20 November 2006. It was answered by Lord Coaker (Labour) on Monday, 4 December 2006 on behalf of the Home Office.

Ethnic Groups (Criminal Activities)

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department if he will undertake research into potential links between ethnic groups and particular criminal activities better to inform police investigations.

Answer: Building up an in-depth understanding of the nature of crime—and victimisation—in particular communities is a fundamental part of good operational policing.At the national level, the Offending, Crime and Justice Survey conducted by the Home Office in 2003 examined self-reported offending across different ethnic groups. The research found that, controlling for the age profile of the different groups, White persons continued to have a higher than average rate for offending in the last year, while for those of mixed ethnic origin there was no difference from the national average. Asian and black persons had lower offending rates.The Office for Criminal Justice Reform, as part of its wider research programme, is conducting research in order better to understand the over-representation of members of black and minority ethnic communities in the criminal justice system, including the over-representation of these groups as victims of crime.

Secondary information